This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for controlling temperature of a liquid crystal cell and more particularly to a method of and apparatus for both gross and fine temperature control of a liquid crystal cell used in an image projection apparatus.
It has been known to use liquid crystal cells in optical devices of various types. The art of creating images to be projected by using a smectic laser-addressed liquid crystal cell has been reviewed, for example, by Todd (Projection Display Devices, Society for Information Display, Seminar Lecture Notes, Vol. II, May 3, 1985). More recently, a method of and apparatus for forming and projecting high precision optical images by using a laser-addressed smectic liquid crystal cell have been disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 861,492 filed May 9, 1986 and assigned to the present assignee. In this and other such applications, it is demanded that the operating temperature of the liquid crystal cell be carefully controlled.